MOBILE, Ala. (AP) — Arkansas State will face Northern Illinois in the GoDaddy.com Bowl in a matchup of conference champions with star quarterbacks.

Bowl officials announced Sunday that Mid-American Conference champion Northern Illinois (10-3) accepted an invitation for the contest played Jan. 8, the eve of the national title game.

Sun Belt Conference champion Arkansas State (10-2) was set as the other participant on Nov. 19.

The Huskies claimed a 23-20 come-from-behind victory over Ohio University Friday night to earn their first MAC championship in 28 years. Northern Illinois rallied from a 20-0 halftime deficit to win on Mathew Sims' last-play 33-yard field goal.

"We were the first selection among teams from our league, which is an honor," Northern Illinois coach Dave Doeren said. "It's a great opportunity to showcase our players and our program on national television the night before the national championship game."

Arkansas State ended its regular season with a 45-14 victory over Troy Saturday to secure the outright league title.

Harnish has passed for 2,942 yards and 26 touchdowns and rushed for 1,382 yards and 11 scores. He won the Vern Smith Leadership Award as the MAC's top player and was named the league's offensive player of the year.

Aplin has 3,235 yards and 18 TDs through the air and has rushed for another 605 yards and nine scores.

"We're excited to have two 10-win conference champions with two of the top quarterbacks in college football and two offensive powerhouses," GoDaddy.com Bowl President Jerry Silverstein said.

The Huskies rank ninth nationally in total offense while Arkansas State is 26th.

The former GMAC Bowl produced the highest scoring bowl game in history in 2001, Marshall's 64-61, double-overtime win over East Carolina.